Science has great potential to make FSC more credible, more adaptive, and more impactful for the future. Studies have already strengthened FSC’s impact across people, forests and markets, but we need more.
Speakers of the session agreed on the need for FSC and its members to tell researchers what they need.
“What I've been seeing is that members constantly ask for more research, more studies, more evidence-based motions and decisions. So I would like to turn the question around to members actually. And I would like to hear what they think that they can gain from more research, more evidence, more data, and what kind of research they need” said Laura Birbalaitė, PhD Researcher at the Institute of Security and Global Affairs, Leiden University.
Moema Pereira Nunes, Professor, Researcher, and Business Consultant from Feevale University, Brazil, added: “Be more open and tell us what you need. And after that, we need access - access to get in contact with people.”
Research results from Brazil, Portugal and Croatia
Dr. Kristina Klaric, Associate Professor at the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, and former FSC auditor, presented her research on the evolving role of FSC certification among Croatian companies from 2015 to 2023. She provided evidence that FSC’s role evolved from being a market pressure instrument to becoming a tool to enhance sustainable practices and give premium market positioning.
Through interviews with around 70 companies, Moema Pereira Nunes identified and analysed perceptions of employees about the positive and negative impacts of FSC certification and found:
“Employees recognize that FSC certification generates substantial positive impact and they feel proud to work in a certified company.”
Luís Miguel Rosalino, wildlife biologist and Associate Professor at the University of Lisbon presented findings from Portugal exploring how FSC certification influences biodiversity in eucalyptus plantations. His team compared certified, non-certified, and protected forest areas to assess whether FSC management criteria help sustain wildlife.
Closing the discussion, session moderator Muhammad Pasha Assalafi, International Forestry Students' Association (IFSA) said:
“Research insights remind us that FSC is not just a label, it is a science-based system that connects human values, forest management, and also global sustainability.”
